Negotiations between kicker Justin Tucker and the Baltimore Ravens have turned ugly.
Due $4.572 million this season under the franchise tag, Tucker has vowed to play elsewhere in 2017 if the team fails to offer an acceptable long-term deal prior to Friday's 4 p.m. ET deadline.
"Justin's disillusioned with the process right now and the Ravens position with him on his contract," Tucker's agent, Rob Roche, told ESPN's Adam Schefter on Thursday. "If we don't get a long-term deal done by Friday, Justin will not entertain offers from Ravens after the season."
The Baltimore Sun reported Monday that both sides felt "optimism" over a new deal, but that was before the Ravens cycled back with an offer that would pay Tucker less than Green Bay's Mason Crosby, per Schefter. We now have a very public game of chicken on our hands.
As the second-most accurate kicker in NFL history, Tucker is likely angling to top the four-year, $17.2 million extension Stephen Gostkowski earned from New England last summer.
He's worth it. Since joining the Ravens as an undrafted free agent in 2012, Tucker has hit on 130 of 148 regular-season field goals for an 87.8 conversion rate. Only Dan Bailey of the Cowboys (90.6) has posted better accuracy.
Kickers are often overlooked commodities in the NFL, but memories of Billy Cundiff's flubbed field goal against the Patriots in the AFC Championship Game won't soon be forgotten in Baltimore. Tucker has solidified the position, but that won't be the case if the Ravens fail to up the ante before Friday comes to a close.
